.223 ammo for home defense?

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Dog Wonder

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recently bought a Bustmaster M4 16 inch barrel rifle with 1:9 twist! Despoite pro's & Cons of a .223 rifle for home defense-this is the rifle I am expert with! I am interested in a .223 round that will have the least chanc
of penetrating my houses exterior wall and visiting my neighbor's house! I am considering the 55gr. Winchester Silvertip http://www.natchezss.com/product.cf...nd=WN&prodID=WNSBST223B&prodTitle=Winchester® Supreme® Ballistic Silvertip® - .223 Rem. 55gr 20/Box ! A police officer friend of mine stated that they use this round in a urban area and that this round rarely leaves a body when shot & has
never exited the exterior wall of any house!

I am open to your opinions on this round and any other rounds you think won't exit the wall of a house!
Thank-you for your input!
Semper Fi!
 
Bustmaster vs Bushmaster. :D


I think you've got a good choice there in the Silvertip. I have several boxes of Win Ranger 64gr Powerpoint, so that is what I am loaded up with.
 
Like rc, I'm using the 55gr VMax in the Hornady TAP line. What is your exterior made out of? Another issue to consider is windows and their location... many houses will contain .223 OK; but one that sails through a window may travel a ways.
 
I currently use 55g Ball ammo, but would really like to switch to your (I assume) hollowpoint ammo.
 
I like the above advice. However, 223 is still going to go through several walls even after a successful shot. The right varmint loads won't penetrate that far through walls, but they're meant to be frangible and are supposed to be used on fragile targets such as small animals. They'll still cause an unholy mess in anybody they hit, but suppose that you don't get a direct shot to the vitals? What if you hit them in the arm, or in the side, or in the shoulder? I'm not a certified terminal ballistics expert, but wouldn't that cause significant problems when you're using a round designed to quickly come to a stop in a body? Human bones are tough things, so your varmint rounds could mandate several successive hits in order to get through the ribs and sternum. I got to use a real skeleton during human anatomy in high school; the sternum is not thin and those ribs are no pushovers either. Therefore, in order to have a good chance of getting a rapid stop with a 223, a JHP or JSP design is recommended, and those will go through a person with enough energy to penetrate walls and hurt people on the other side. I recommend setting up a defensive position where you have a clear lane of fire where rounds don't pose a risk of flying through the wall and killing your kids, your wife, some bloke out for a stroll, your neighbors, the cats, the dog, or anything else valuable. I am acutely aware that there are 223 loadings which won't go through your house, but I don't know anything about their manstopping performance which is why I am hesitant to recommend them; pretty much anything that can stop a 200 pound Human in one go is surely powerful enough to break through walls. I looked through the link to Hornady. the 55gr loads didn't overpenetrate, but neither did they penetrate that far, only getting about 8 inches of penetration from a 16 inch barrel into a solely gelatin block at point blank range. The F.B.I. recommends a minimum of 12 inches for defensive bullets because they have to get through clothing, skin, bones, membranes, and potentially come in from weird angles or have to pass through arms.
 
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If you are worried about overpenetration stick with 55 grain hollow points. I prefer Hornady and Black Hills rounds, but any 55 grain hp will do a great job on an intruder.
 
steven58 said:
Even 55 grain FMJ won't overpenatrate. It fragments in 1 layer of drywall.
Click to expand...

I am not aware of ANY 55gr FMJ that fragments in a single sheet of either 1/2" or 5/8" drywall. Typically, 55gr FMJ is going to zip through a few walls - and not all 55gr FMJ is created equally either. Some will not fragment even in gel.
 
To each his own, I just don't understand why anybody would choose an AR15 for home defense. Unless of course you're fighting off a mob that's attacking your house from the street. It just doesn't seem practical in that situation. Of all my guns, it's just not the one I would grab for if someone broke in.
 
What if you hit them in the arm, or in the side, or in the shoulder
Click to expand...
Nobody ever said you can only shoot one shot in a gun fight.

Thats what the other 18 or 28 rounds in the mag are for.

rc
 
OhioChief, he's a Marine. He knows that gun inside and out. It's a familiar, trusted companion. It is the one Uncle Sam paid him to carry around. Why would he pick anything else? He's got years of muscle memory built up around it.

I feel similarly, though I was a soldier, not a Marine.

As far as why it is a good weapon for use as a home (or Homeland) defense weapon, it is light, handy, very accurate, reliable, low recoil, reasonably powerful, holds lots of bullets, fast follow-up shots, penetrates building materials less than most other serious loads in serious calibers/gauges. It will cover most defensive needs from up close to out there a ways. Everyone in my house, from my scrawny little 12yo on up can use it effectively. It is very, very practical.

Um, I think I can come up with some more, if that's not enough. I just can't imagine a serious situation in which I will wish for something different.
 
sixgunner455 said:
OhioChief, he's a Marine. He knows that gun inside and out. It's a familiar, trusted companion. It is the one Uncle Sam paid him to carry around. Why would he pick anything else? He's got years of muscle memory built up around it.

I feel similarly, though I was a soldier, not a Marine.

As far as why it is a good weapon for use as a home (or Homeland) defense weapon, it is light, handy, very accurate, reliable, low recoil, reasonably powerful, holds lots of bullets, fast follow-up shots, penetrates building materials less than most other serious loads in serious calibers/gauges. It will cover most defensive needs from up close to out there a ways. Everyone in my house, from my scrawny little 12yo on up can use it effectively. It is very, very practical.

Um, I think I can come up with some more, if that's not enough. I just can't imagine a serious situation in which I will wish for something different.
Click to expand...
sixgunner455-You must have known a Marine in your life because you expressed exactly why I choose this weapon! People who have not received any training with this weapon
are missing out on a great system! Thank-you soldier for your kind words-from a former Marine!
 
OhioChuef said:
To each his own, I just don't understand why anybody would choose an AR15 for home defense.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure why anyone would want anything else.

30 rounds. Lightweight. Short for close quarters use. Good lethality without too much over penetration, at least no more than other weapons. Ability to easily mount a light. Easy to practice with.

There is a reason the LE agencies across the country are abandoning the shotgun for the carbine. Personally I like the heavier 75gr TAP for mine.
 
This entire "Box of Truth" stuff can be summed up nicely in one paragraph they have on their website.

Box O Truth said:
But doesn't 00 Buck penetrate too much in interior walls to be a "safe" load in a home?
Yes, it does penetrate a lot. But any load that is going to be effective will need to penetrate walls to have enough power to penetrate bad guys. If our only concern was to be sure we didn't penetrate walls, we would use BB guns. However, BB guns will not stop bad guys.

Therefore, we must use loads that will STOP bad guys, and this means that they will also penetrate walls. So, be sure you hit the bad guy and do not shoot into walls where loved ones are on the other side.
Click to expand...

We want bad guys stopped as soon as possible. If I choose ammo based on penetration and the bad guy lives to fight longer, odds are I am putting MORE lead into the air which increases the odds I will hit something I don't want to.
 
I don't know if he does ot not, but he is right.

I posted a link to actual data in post #9.

But I'll post it again rat cheer.
http://www.theboxotruth.com/docs/bot1.htm

rc
Click to expand...

He's right about what? About 55fmj fragmenting in one layer of drywall? That's not what your link shows. The link you posted says:

Notice that the XM-193 is tumbling.

We pulled the sixth sheet and that's about where it first tumbled.
Click to expand...

It also says all the rounds they fired went through all 12 sheets of drywall, except for the .22lr. 55gr XM193 also went through 12 pine boards.
 
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